I’ve always been a big fan of spaghetti bolognese. I think it was actually one of the first meals I  learned to cook at home – and during my student times this dish was very much a weekly staple! However these days as part of my 80/20 diet, on my healthy days I try to limit my carb intake. Luckily eating clean and healthy doesn’t need to mean missing out on your favourite foods because there are many substitutes you can use in your cooking that are more low-carb.  So nowadays when I cook bolognese, I just make zucchini noodles and substitute that for traditional pasta.  And it is just as delicious!!

This is my healthy spaghetti bolognese recipe.

So instead of boiling wheat based pasta I get out my beloved spiral cutter to create a bowl of low carb zucchini pasta! You can read all about how I make them here; link! Not only are they a super healthy replacement, it is also very fast and low-fuss cooking. The noodles are created in less than 5 minutes and just before my bolognese sauce is ready, I pop them into the microwave for about 3 minutes to heat them up (but ensuring not to overcook them because you want to keep a nice ‘al-dente’ crunch).

Looks so much like pasta doesn’t it? Zucchini’s don’t have much flavour of their own so it makes them are a perfect vegetable pasta substitute, plus it even soaks up a bit of the flavours from the sauce you decide to add with them. So onto the recipe for my bolognese sauce;

Ingredients:
(serves 2)

• 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 250-300grams lean beef mince (I usually get extra lean mince, which is about 5% fat)
• 250grams white button mushrooms, sliced
• 1 onion, chopped finely
• 2 cloves of garlic, crushed
• 1 x 400g can chopped tomatoes
• 1 tbsp worcestershire sauce
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• Grated parmesan cheese, to serve

Method:

1. Heat the olive oil in a large saucepan over a medium heat. Add the onion and garlic and cook for 2-3 minutes until just softened. Stir in the mince,  breaking it up with a wooden spoon and cook for 2–3 minutes until the beef mince is browned.
2. Stir in the sliced mushrooms and cook for 1 minute. Add the can of chopped tomatoes, worcestershire sauce and season with salt and pepper.  Stir well and bring to the boil, then reduce the heat to simmer for 10-15 minutes,  stirring occasionally, until the sauce has thickened.
3. While your sauce is cooking away, you have time to create your healthy zucchini ‘spaghetti’ and right before the sauce is ready heat them in the microwave for 2-3 minutes so they are nice and warm but remain firm – no one likes soggy noodles!
4. Divide your ‘pasta’ into serving bowls, top with the bolognese sauce and sprinkle with freshly grated Parmesan cheese if you fancy it; I love the stuff!
5. Serve immediately and ENJOY!

How easy was that right? This meal comes in at approximately 300 calories per bowl/serving (including the ‘pasta’) and it is super filling! Spaghetti bolognese is always a crowd pleaser and preparing it this way means you don’t have to worry about the calories or the carb guilt!

I hope you enjoyed this recipe and I would love to know if you gave it a go :)